Time Enough
by Mako-clb
Summary: If you know the future, there isn't anything to worry about. But, the future isn't set in stone. One change can make a big difference.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: This story is mainly based on the Sailor Moon anime, -- You can tell because the Four Sisters are alive -- but there are a few things from the manga that pop-up from time to time. Also, I'm using the dub names for this story (i.e. Serena, Mina, Lita, etc.) Sorry to all the dub-haters out there, but that's just the way I'm writing this one.

Lastly, this takes place after the last episode of Sailor Moon R, but before Sailor Moon S. However, there are a few spoilers for that season. They really don't spoil much though. I can't explain more or it would ruin the story.

Disclaimer: All characters in this story were created by and belong to Naoko Takeuchi. I won't pretend otherwise. I can only hope she won't mind if I borrow them for a short time.

**Time Enough**  
Chapter 1  
by Corina "Mako" Borsuk

"Mom is going to kill me! Even worse, she's not gonna let me see Darien anymore, or go to the arcade, or hang with you guys, or go shopping, or anything. I'll be grounded for life!" The finality of the young girl's dire prediction was reflected in her defeated walk. With her shoulders slumped and head down, causing her exceedingly long blond pig-tails to scrape the ground, she looked exactly like the failure she felt she was at that moment.

"Serena, you're overreacting. I mean, you did get a 'C.' That's passing. Plus, it's way better than your usual grades," encouraged the girl standing next to Serena, a girl who was practically her polar opposite. While Serena was of average height for a girl her age, with bright blue eyes and thick blond hair, her friend, Lita, was extremely tall for her age, and a bit muscular, with green eyes and reddish-brown hair done up in a ponytail.

"Doesn't matter. Mom said that if I didn't get at least an eighty percent on this math test, she was gonna ground me. She's really getting serious about my grades."

"I hate to say it, but maybe you should get serious. After all, your grades are pretty low, and we do have to start studying for the entrance exams in a couple months."

"Lita, I can't believe you just said that! Have you been possessed by Amy or something?"

"Guess I have been listening to Amy go on about the exams a bit too much," the taller girl admitted, looking slightly embarrassed.

"That's right. We should be having fun, not studying. We deserve some time off after that last battle with the Black Moon Family."

Lita stopped suddenly and stomped her foot. "Darn, I almost forgot. I'm supposed to meet Catzy and give her a cooking lesson. You don't mind if I skip the arcade, do you?"

"It's okay. I'm going to try and find Darien. His class should be out by now, and I'm pretty sure he's got the day off from work. Besides, today may be the last day I get to see him in a long time." Serena let her last statement hang in the air for a moment before following up with a long sigh.

"It's not that bad, Serena. Even if you are grounded for a couple of days, you and Darien have plenty of time to be together. You don't have to worry. We saw the future, and it's obvious you two are still together. At most, it'll be a week, not, like, years or anything."

"You're a real help, Lita," Serena replied sarcastically.

"Well, gotta go! Bye!" Lita said as she ran off towards the Four Sister's apartment.

******

If Serena hadn't been a little glum before, she certainly was now. She'd looked just about everywhere for Darien, with no luck. The arcade had been first, since it was close by, and she wanted to play the new Capcom vs. Marvel game. When Andrew said he hadn't seen Darien all day, she tried his apartment. Serena spent what seemed like forever knocking on his door before she'd given up. And now, she was leaving the library, and still hadn't found him.

It just wasn't fair, the blond decided. Darien could find her whenever he wanted, but he hardly ever tried, except when she was in danger. At least, she didn't think he did. Serena, on the other hand, would be more than happy to just be able to show up wherever Darien was, all the time, because she had some kind of internal compass, or something, trained on him.

Just as Serena was about to give it a go anyway and try to feel where Darien was, someone ran into her, knocking her down hard. That was a first, someone knocking her over, instead of the other way around -- Not that she was really that bad, but certain people named Raye liked to exaggerate her clumsiness. When Serena bumped into people, however, she had the decency to apologize, unlike the rude boy who had just taken off without so much as a glance in her direction. Then, she heard the screams filled with fear and panic. It could only mean one thing - Sailor Moon was needed. Sure enough, Serena saw some inhuman creature just around the corner of the library, sucking energy from innocent people.

Well, it looked like she might get to see Darien after all, or at least Tuxedo Mask, but not under the circumstances she was hoping for. Mumbling angrily to herself, Serena hit the all-call button on her communicator, and then she raced inside the library to find a quiet place to transform.

A few moments later, a voice rang out strong and clear. "Stop right there! It isn't nice to attack innocent people. For making an already bad day worse, I will punish you!" Sailor Moon finished her speech with a flourish, satisfied at the results. As usual, the creature had been temporarily distracted by her little show, giving everyone else a chance to escape. It was one of the reasons she announced herself like that, even though she lost the element of surprise. Besides, it was one of the few fun things she got to do as Sailor Moon.

Unfortunately, as also usually happened, while Sailor Moon was busy watching to see that everyone got away safely, the creature recovered and launched the first attack. With a grace and speed that Sailor Moon envied, the monster closed the short distance between them. From its outstretched hand, the creature sprayed a fine mist towards the unprepared Soldier of the Moon. Reacting purely out of fear and instinct, Sailor Moon flung herself out of the line of fire. Before she even had a chance to sigh in relief, Sailor Moon hit the library wall, hard, leaving her slightly dazed. Her opponent, taking advantage of the situation, turned and let loose a wide spray of the strange misty substance. Sailor Moon regained her senses just as the liquid hit her. Her whole body tensed in anticipation of the pain, but it never came. Surprised, but grateful, Sailor Moon declared, "Your trick didn't work, but that's too bad. Now, it's my turn!"

Pulling her Moon Scepter from its subspace pocket, she raised it above her head and began the attack that would, hopefully, turn her enemy into dust. But, midway through the attack, Sailor Moon dropped to her knees, barely keeping her grip on the Moon Scepter. She'd hoped that the intense dizziness she felt would stop when she stopped spinning, but it didn't. Instead, it seemed to be getting worse. Struggling to open her eyes and stop the world from spinning, Serena looked up to see the creature standing over her, watching her with an almost knowing smile. Serena blinked once, trying desperately to bring the world into focus, before everything faded to black.

******

_to be continued_


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: Sailor Moon belongs to Naoko-sensei and not me.

Author's Note: See Chapter 1.

**Time Enough**  
Chapter 2  
by Corina "Mako" Borsuk

Endymion brought his sword down, slashing deeply into the monster's gut. A thick, gooey red substance gushed from the wound, and although from a distance it might look like blood, Endymion knew it was anything but. He wanted nothing more than to drive his sword into the creature's foul body and end its miserable existence in retribution for all the pain it and its ilk had caused him. But, he knew he couldn't, and not just because it wasn't in the plan. Endymion, and the sword that had become an extension of his arm, could wound the creatures they fought, could cause them pain, but he couldn't destroy them. Only the Sailor Soldiers could do that, and then only barely. It usually took all of their combined powers to destroy the monsters, and that was why he was here, to provide a distraction, to buy the Soldiers the time they needed to get the job done.

The armor-clad warrior thrust his sword forward in a follow-up strike, but his bulky opponent side-stepped and countered with an attack of its own. The Prince of Earth twisted to the right, allowing the energy beam to pass harmlessly through the space he had just occupied. Twisting again, he swung his sword in an arc, aiming once again for the creature's box-shaped mid-section.

The sword never reached its target. Overcome by an intense wave of dizziness and a light feeling in his chest, Endymion fell, his sword clattering to the ground beside him. The creature he faced, aware that its opponent was suddenly vulnerable, raised its arm and took deliberate, deadly aim. The monster took a few moments to charge its energy blast to maximum. It shouldn't have waited. For just before it fired, the creature itself was hit from behind by the timely Planet Attack from the Sailor Soldiers. Endymion's attack had only ever been a distraction so the Soldiers could combine their powers to deliver the lethal blow. With the last of the enemies defeated, for tonight, the plan was for Endymion and the Soldiers to regroup, collect the spoils of battle, and deliver them to their rightful owners. That was, if they could be located, and if it wasn't already too late.

Endymion didn't give a damn about the plan. It had taken time to remember the feeling - the light, more spiritual than visual, that made him feel as if the darkness that he had dwelled in for so long would vanish forever, and the warmth, comfortable and comforting, like a favorite sweater. And most of all the love, which flowed through him, caressed him, and made him feel that life was worth living. But, now that the memory had returned, it could only come from one place. As the truth, the wonderful, beautiful, unbelievable truth, dawned on him, a transformation took over his body to match the one that had already overtaken his soul. Where once Endymion, ancient Prince of Earth had knelt, there was now Tuxedo Mask, Earth's chosen warrior and Sailor Moon's protector. But, he did not remain on his knees for long. With a speed born of hope, Tuxedo Mask leapt to his feet and practically flew in the direction his heart led him.

******

From across the street, the Sailor Soldiers had witnessed the results of their combined attack, watching as the monster devolved into its former egg shape. They had also seen Endymion on the ground, his sword beside him, trembling. Concerned that he might be injured, Mercury pulled out her computer and headed towards him. Jupiter walked beside her, with Mars and Venus slightly behind. All were on alert, prepared for an attack from any creatures they might have missed. What they were not prepared for was Endymion's sudden transformation into a guise they had not seen in months. Nor were they prepared for his sudden and swift flight atop the buildings of Tokyo.

Venus only hesitated for a moment before shouting, "Jupiter, Mars, follow him. Find out where he's going and what in the hell just happened! Stay together, and keep in touch."

Even as the Soldiers of Fire and Lightening raced after their friend and fellow warrior, Venus was desperately wishing she could go with them. What she had just seen should be impossible. Tuxedo Mask shouldn't exist; he hadn't been able to exist since that day that had changed her life, all of their lives, forever. Yet, there was no denying it had been Tuxedo Mask and not Endymion who had just run off. There could only be one reason, one explanation, but it was something she dared not even hope for.

Pushing those thoughts aside for now, Venus turned to help Mercury collect the small glowing, glittering orbs that lay on the street before them. The objects would never be found in any doctor's journal or text, but the Soldiers knew just how important they were to every living thing, and possibly to the fate of the entire planet.

******

She was uncomfortable. That was the first thing Serena decided as consciousness returned. Sleeping on a hard floor was definitely uncomfortable. What she couldn't figure out was why she was sleeping on the floor. Slowly opening her eyes, Serena was greeted with the sight of Tokyo at night instead of her room, as she had expected. Sitting up carefully, Serena realized that she was Sailor Moon. It took her a few eye blinks and head shakes to remember that the last thing she did remember was fighting that monster and passing out. Since she wasn't dead, that meant the Sailors or Tuxedo Mask had saved her. But then, why was she alone, in the street, at night. Surely her friends wouldn't have just left her here, unless something happened to them. But, if they were hurt or, well she wouldn't think of "or." But, she would be that, too. Why was nothing every easy? Why did that stupid monster have to show up anyway? It just wasn't fair, and it didn't make sense.

She decided that the best and safest thing to do, for now, was to try to contact the others on her communicator. She never got the chance. She never even heard her attacker until the demented cackle that followed the blow to her head. She tried to get up and run, but her vision blurred and the ringing in her ears made it seem as if the laughter was coming from everywhere at once, leaving her with no idea of which way to flee.

Suddenly, she was being lifted off the ground by strong arms. She hoped desperately that it was Tuxedo Mask, but her hopes were shattered when the creature began to shake her roughly. She thought she heard it say something about her heart, but she wasn't really sure. All of the shaking was making her head hurt and made the ringing in her ears worse. Then, for no reason Sailor Moon could see, the creature stopped the shaking and shifted its grip on her. Holding her up by her pig-tails, the bluish-grey, finned monster placed its free hand on Serena's chest.

At first, all Sailor Moon felt was a strange, warm feeling in her chest. But then, that warm feeling grew hotter until she felt as if her chest were on fire. Next came a stabbing pain, as if a needle had been stuck through her, from the inside out. She broke out in a cold sweat, gasping for breath and clutching her chest. Just as the darkness began to claim her, Sailor Moon heard a scream pierce the air. She wasn't sure if it came from her own lips or the creature's, but it didn't matter because the pain had finally stopped. As her mind clawed its way back from the edge of unconsciousness, she felt strong arms around her. For a moment she feared the shaking would start again, but her fears were laid to rest. The arms that held her this time were strong, but gentle and familiar. They cradled her close to a warm body, as if promising to protect her. Struggling to open her eyes, Sailor Moon could see nothing more than worried blue eyes behind a white mask. But, that was all she needed to see to know that Tuxedo Mask had saved her again. In the knowledge that she was safe in the arms of the man she loved, Sailor Moon let her heavy lids fall closed, breathed in slow, deep breaths, and tried to give her mind and body a chance to recover from the turmoil she had just been through.

Sailor Moon wasn't sure how long she stayed like that, safe in Tuxedo Mask's arms, the air rushing by her. When she finally felt like herself again, she opened her eyes, expecting him to set her down so they could return to the fight. Instead, he kept running. She knew that he knew she was awake, yet he didn't stop.

"I'm okay now," Serena said as brightly as she could. She didn't really feel one-hundred percent yet, but she was certainly well enough to dust one monster. But, Darien still didn't stop.

A menacing growl from behind them distracted Serena from the unreadable expression on Tuxedo Mask's face. Serena leaned her head back slightly, just enough to glance around her protector's shoulder. What she saw at least partially explained why Darien hadn't stopped. The fish-eyed monster that he had rescued her from was chasing them and gaining fast.

"Jupiter Thunderclap Zap!"

"Go Jupiter!" Sailor Moon shouted as the ball of lightening that could only have come from her friend and fellow Sailor Soldier struck the monster. As the scaley creature hesitated, confused by the new threat, Sailor Moon readied herself to attack after Tuxedo Mask set her down. He didn't. He just kept running.

"Mars Fire Ignite!" echoed off the buildings, and Tuxedo Mask ran.

"Jupiter Thunder Crash!" could be heard not far off, and still he ran.

"Evil Spirits Begone!" carried faintly to Serena's ears, and still he ran.

Then a terrible scream echoed through the night, and Serena couldn't stand it anymore. "Stop! Tuxedo Mask, we have to stop!" Her words went unheaded. "Darien, stop! We can't leave them!" She pounded his chest with her small fists, begging him, "Stop! Please stop!"

He didn't stop, but he slowed. For the first time, Tuxedo Mask looked down at the girl he held in his arms, really looked at her. He saw her eyes, filled with tears. He saw the pleading look in her eyes. Tuxedo Mask stopped.

In that same instant, Sailor Moon pushed herself out of his grasp, nearly falling on her backside in the process. She said not a word before racing back in the direction from which they had just come. Tuxedo Mask didn't waste an instant before running after her. He wasn't going to let her out of his sight for an instant, not now, not ever.

******

By the time Sailor Moon retraced her steps back to the battle site, Jupiter was lying on the ground, possibly unconscious and certainly hurt, and Mars was holding her shoulder even as she faced the monster. The sight made Sailor Moon sick to her stomach. She hated seeing her friends, seeing anyone, suffer. She hated it even more than she hated fighting. That was why, despite the internal struggle she faced before every battle, she continued to fight.

Realizing that it was well past time to get her show on the road, Sailor Moon shouted, "Over here! I'm the star of this show, and don't you forget it. And now, it's time for the grand finale!" Sailor Moon flicked her gloved hand, apparently reaching for something, but there was nothing but air. At least, that's all there should have been. Instead, Sailor Moon's fingers clutched a pink scepter, for which she was exceptionally grateful. For a brief moment, she had been afraid her Moon Scepter wouldn't be there when she reached for it, that it had been lost during her earlier battle. But, it appeared when she called.

Raising the pink scepter above her head, Sailor Moon began to charge it with power. "Moon…" She swung the scepter down and back up. "Scepter…" She repeated the action, arcing the scepter in the opposite direction.

"Elimination!" The Moon Scepter swung forward and out, aimed directly at the fish-like creature which had threatened her and attacked her friends. Energy erupted out of the scepter, streaking toward its target and exploding with blazing light on impact.

"Dusted!" Sailor Moon shouted in triumph. Her victory shout was followed by a gasp of disbelief as the dust cleared to reveal the enemy still standing.

Sailor Moon was frozen in shock. How could it not work? Her scepter always worked, at least against the average enemy monster or droid. Why not now? What had she done wrong? How could she protect her friends if her attack didn't work? Distracted by those thoughts, Sailor Moon never saw the spiked ball hurtling towards her.

Fortunately, her protector was close at hand. A red rose intercepted the projectile even as Tuxedo Mask pushed Sailor Moon out of harms way. An attack of fiery rings followed, causing the scaley-skinned creature to redirect its attack to Sailor Mars. Having recovered a few moments before, Jupiter joined in, electricity propelled from her hands to collide with the enemy again and again. Despite the ferocity and relentlessness of the twin attacks of flame and lightening, the enemy continued forward, barely slowed.

Sailor Moon had always looked to Tuxedo Mask to give her strength, to be her courage when she couldn't find her own. With her friends in danger and her only means of attack useless, she looked to him now. "What do I do?" she pleaded. "My scepter didn't work. I don't know what to do." But, there was no answer, no indication he even understood her. There was only the haunted look in his steady gaze. When she could no longer stand the silence and the staring, she turned back to the battle. Tears filled her eyes, blurring her vision, but she didn't care. She had to help her friends. It was that simple.

She picked her Moon Scepter off the ground, held it high above her head and shouted the words that would unleash its power. Even if she couldn't destroy the monster, maybe she could hurt it, or at least distract it, until Venus and Mercury arrived. The sickening thought that Venus and Mercury weren't here because the enemy had already defeated them briefly flashed through her mind, but she pushed the image away to concentrate on attacking the blue-grey thing before her.

This time, instead of using the standard energy burst, the Soldier of the Moon focused her power into a constant stream flowing from her scepter toward the monster attacking her friends. Just like when she and the Sailors were fighting the Kisenian on that asteroid, this form of her attack might not be as instantly powerful as the single burst, but the constant, steady flow of light energy worked better against multiple enemies. Or, as Serena hoped, it might slow down one exceptionally tough monster.

At first, Sailor Moon's plan appeared to be working. It seemed to Serena that the monster was in pain. Not to mention that her attack had it stopped cold. The only problem was, it was still fighting while Serena was running out of fight. With everything she'd already been through - fighting that first monster this afternoon, getting knocked out, having this creature do that thing to her chest - she was a little low on energy, and she wasn't sure she could keep going for much longer. But, just when she was about to give up hope, her friends rejoined the battle.

Taking their cure from Sailor Moon, Mars unleashed a continuous stream of fire from her fingertips while Jupiter made an electric circuit with their enemy as the ground. While individually the attacks were not as strong as their newer ones, the non-stop barrage of energy, added to Sailor Moon's own, finally started to take its toll on the creature. It screamed in agony once, twice, and then froze before dissolving into a plastic fish and a white egg-shaped thing that split open, releasing black smoke.

Gratefully, Sailor Moon sank to her knees, her head down, breathing hard. "Wow, that was really tough. I hope I never have to do that again. Hey, is everybody okay?"

When the Soldier of the Moon looked up, Tuxedo Mask stood before her, silent tears slowly falling down his face. "Serena?" he asked in a disbelieving whisper. He dropped to his knees and almost fearfully reached out to her, stopping just short of actually touching the wide-eyed girl. "Serena?" he asked again, his voice stronger, but still unsure.

In a panicked voice, Sailor Moon asked, "Darien, what's wrong? Are you okay?" Tuxedo Mask responded by throwing his arms around her and pulling her to him in an intense embrace. The unexpected and completely uncharacteristic action sent shivers up Serena's spine. Something was wrong, very wrong, she decided. She looked up to her friends, and what she saw only added to her fear. Jupiter's face was ashen and her mouth moved as if she were trying to speak, but no sound came out. Mars looked as if she couldn't decide how to look. She wore a serious frown that was matched by the intense gaze in her eyes. But, under it all, Serena saw another emotion that she just couldn't identify.

"What's wrong with Darien?" Serena cried. "Where are Amy and Mina? Why are you guys looking at me like that? I just don't understand!"

******

_to be continued_


	3. Interlude 1

Disclaimer: Naoko-sensei and Bandai own Sailor Moon. I don't, and I don't intend any disrespect with this story.

Continuity: After Sailor Moon R, but before Sailor Moon S.

**Time Enough**  
Interlude 1  
by Corina "Mako" Borsuk

The winds howled, buffeting the solitary figure with enough power to topple the strongest and most sure-footed, but the young woman held her ground. As suddenly as it came, the wind died down. Yet, even as her long, dark-green hair and short, dark skirt settled back into place, the young woman knew that the danger was still present. For this was the Fourth Dimension, where all times were simultaneously past, present, and future.

The winds that forever blew in this time outside of time were literally the winds of change. Like ripples on a pond, the winds blew from one event to another, starting at their point of origin and extending to affect all that would come after. In the Fourth Dimension, these winds were constant; for at any given moment in any place in time, a decision or action was being made that would change what was to come after it. Sometimes the winds were a light breeze, if the event held little significance and caused little change. Other times, as had just occurred, the winds raged with a fury unimaginable to most. Those winds signified a change so profound that nothing in the time to follow would remain the same. All of these changes occurred naturally, although the more significant ones less so.

Regardless of the changes wrought, of whether she found them to her liking or not, the young woman who wielded the Staff of Time and held the Keys to the Fourth Dimension was honor bound to do nothing to change it.

She was Sailor Pluto, the Guardian of Time. No one knew who had given her this task, nor how long she had served at her post. For, despite her youthful appearance, she was older than the span of recorded history on Earth, older even than the Silver Millennium. Perhaps even Pluto herself no longer remembered when she had come to guard the Gate of Time, but guard it she did. It was her sacred duty to ensure that no one tampered with the time stream, no matter the cause. Twice she had violated her oath, allowing others passage through the Fourth Dimension. The first time had been when Queen Serenity sent the spirits of Princess Serenity, Prince Endymion, and the Sailor Soldiers, as well as the physical bodies of Luna and Artemis, to Earth's future. The second time had been only recently, in so far as her own personal time-line traveled. She had allowed Small Lady to travel to the past and the Sailor Soldiers to travel to the future in order to prevent the Black Moon Family from changing the past.

That threat to the time stream had ended with the end of the Wiseman. Or, so Pluto had thought. But, the violent winds that had just blown through the Fourth Dimension were not the result of natural changes to the time stream. Just moments before, Sailor Pluto felt someone or something pass through the Gate of Time. Whatever it was had become lost, as all things did unless in possession of one of the keys that hung from the chain around Pluto's waist. She had been searching for the anomalous entity when the winds began. It could only mean that, despite being lost in her domain, the entity had managed to alter a point in time.

The Guardian of Time's duty was clear. First, she must find whatever it was that had entered her domain unwelcome and prevent it from doing any further damage. Then, she must determine where and when the time disruption had occurred. Last, and most difficult of all, Sailor Pluto had to try and repair the damage without causing any further disruptions herself.

******

_to be continued_


	4. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. See chapter 1 for further disclaimer.

**Time Enough**  
Chapter 3  
by Corina "Mako" Borsuk

"How dare you impersonate Sailor Moon!" Sailor Mars shouted.

"What are you talking about? I'm not impersonating anyone. I AM Sailor Moon."

"You can't be! Sailor Moon is dead!"

"No, she's not, Raye," Tuxedo Mask said in a quiet, but steady voice. "She's alive, right here in my arms."

"No! She can't be!" Mars shouted in denial.

Sailor Jupiter placed a hand on Mars' shoulder to try to calm the shorter girl as she asked Tuxedo Mask, "Are you sure?"

"As sure as I've ever been of anything in my life," he replied, still holding Sailor Moon tightly. "This is Serena."

That was all the convincing the Soldier of Jupiter needed. She flung herself on Sailor Moon, crushing both the blond and Tuxedo Mask in a fierce hug. "Oh, Serena, we're so glad you're back."

"Back from where?" Sailor Moon asked, although she couldn't be heard over the sound of Jupiter as she shouted excitedly into her communicator for Venus and Mercury to meet them as quickly as possible.

******

Serena Tsukino sat on the floor at the Cherry Hill Temple, dressed in her Crossroads Junior High School uniform and a cup of hot chocolate in her hands. Darien, now wearing his usual green blazer instead of a tuxedo, sat next to her, his arm around her shoulders. The warmth of the hot chocolate and Darien's presence were comforting, but they didn't make it any easier for her to believe that she had been missing for over six months. It just wasn't possible. She didn't remember being missing, but Amy said it was true. Amy Mizuno, Sailor Mercury, was the smartest person Serena knew, maybe even smarter than Darien, so if she said Serena had been missing, it must be so. But still, it was difficult to believe.

"Are you really, really sure?" Serena asked her friends, the assembled Sailor Soldiers. "I mean, if I was missing for that long, where was I?"

Serena waited, expecting Raye to jump in with a comment like, if we knew where you were, you wouldn't have been missing, Meatball Brains. But, she didn't. Raye just stood there silently, staring at Serena like she had been doing since they arrived at the temple.

"We don't know, Serena," Sailor Mercury replied as she continued to scan Serena with her VR visor and micro-computer. With the exception of Mercury, the rest of the Sailor Soldiers had de-transformed into their normal, everyday selves. Usually, Serena felt calmer when they weren't transformed - safer, at least, because battles seemed further away at those times, even when they were having a Sailor meeting with Luna and Artemis, their magical cat guardians, much as they were right now.

This time it wasn't working and neither was Darien. Usually she felt safer and more confident when he was around. Not that she didn't feel totally safe with his arm around her like it was, but as nice as it felt, it was also making her nervous. Darien rarely got this close to her physically or was this obvious about his feelings in front of others. For some reason, this current demonstration was making her feel strange.

"Are you sure you don't remember anything?" Lita asked again, breaking Serena out of her thoughts.

"The last thing I remember is being knocked out by that droid that showed up after you went to meet Catzy and her sisters. At least, I think that's what happened. Then I woke up." Serena shrugged, not sure what else to say. The whole thing was just too weird.

"Are you sure it was a droid?" Mina asked, her brow furrowed together as if she were trying to answer a difficult test question. "I mean, we defeated the Black Moon family and Wiseman way before that happened."

"Well, it looked like one of the monsters they used," Serena answered, squirming a bit as Mercury continued to scan her from every possible angle.

"Maybe it was a daimon," Lita suggested as she poured herself more tea.

She turned to Serena, asking, "Do you want some more hot chocolate?"

The blond nodded and handed her now empty mug to Lita before asking, "What's a daimon?"

"They're the heart snatchers you fought tonight," Luna answered for Lita since the tallest Sailor was heading for the kitchen. Luna and Artemis had been briefed on the situation by Jupiter and Tuxedo Mask as soon as they had all arrived and finished celebrating Serena's return. Even the usually all-business lunar cat had been reluctant to end the impromptu hug-fest that had resulted. As Sailor Moon's mentor, friend, and sometimes even second mother, Luna had missed Serena dearly, but they, and she, needed to know how Serena had disappeared and why.

"Maybe Lita's right," Artemis, Luna's fellow talking cat and Mina's guardian, suggested. "It might have been a daimon sent to capture Sailor Moon so she couldn't interfere."

"That just doesn't make sense," Luna argued. "Why would they just try to capture her? The Witches Five have no qualms about killing people to get what they want."

"Witches Five? Killing people? What are you talking about, Luna?"

"The Witches Five control the daimons. They're the new enemy." Serena nodded, and Luna continued. "They send the daimons to steal the heart crystals of those with pure hearts." Noticing Serena's puzzled look, Luna decided a more in-depth explanation was in order.

"It started about two weeks after you disappeared. We were meeting here after school so we could continue our search for you." Luna paused a moment, overcome by emotion, though she hoped no one else would notice. Taking a deep breath to collect herself, she continued, "That's when a daimon attacked Raye. We didn't know what they were at the time or what they were after. The girls were no match for it. It sucked out a crystal from inside Raye -- her heart crystal. We still don't understand it completely, but apparently, they are vital for human existence. If it hadn't been for Sailors Uranus and Neptune, we might have lost Raye, but they destroyed the daimon, and we were able to return her pure heart crystal to her."

"Sailors Uranus and Neptune!?! You mean there are more Sailor Soldiers." Serena jumped up from her seat, turning this way and that, as if the two Sailors would just suddenly appear. "Where are they? When can I meet them? What are they like? Do they like video games?"

"Haruka loved the racing video games," Lita replied sadly as she returned from the kitchen with Serena's hot chocolate. "She was really good. You would have liked her."

"I know I will!" Serena enthused, not catching the somber mood that had fallen over her friends. "Call them up, quick, and ask them to come over. I know it's late, but I really wanna meet the new Soldiers."

"You can't, Serena," Amy replied, tears in her eyes.

"Why not?" Serena asked, her excitement dimming as she saw the look on Amy's face.

Serena felt Darien's hand squeeze her own gently as he said, "They're dead, Serena."

"No," she whispered in disbelief as tears filled her own eyes. Even if she never met them, Uranus and Neptune were Sailor Soldiers, just like she and her friends. If they were anything like Amy, Lita, Mina, or Raye, she just knew they would have been wonderful friends, but now she would never have a chance to know for certain. That just wasn't fair.

"Yes, they're dead," Raye said. It was the first time she had spoken since they arrived at the Cherry Hill Temple. "And, so is a little girl and Andrew's sister." Raye paused for a moment to stare hard at Serena. "And, so is Chad."

******

_to be continued_


End file.
